Subscription vs API cost comparison · checked 2026-07-19

What would your measured agent usage actually cost?

Bring your own key (BYOK) or subscribe? Enter observed tokens to compare a metered API bill with a fixed seat price. The seat’s actual usage limit remains unknown.

Measured usage · official rates

Build your monthly bill receipt

Usage per run is multiplied by monthly runs and seats. No prompts, code, or personal data enter the URL.

1 · Rate identityProvider / model

Official input: $2 input · $0.20 cache read · $10 output / 1M tokens

▲ Introductory pricing ends Aug 31, 2026; it fails closed after that date.

2 · Your measured run

Input

tokens / run

Cache read

tokens / run

Output

tokens / run

Repetitions

runs / month / seat

Team size

seats

Monthly API spend

$26.40

per month at your measured volume

Claude Pro sticker$20.00 / month

Non-equivalent reference · subscription token capacity is undisclosed.

Bounded verdictSeat sticker cheaper; capacity unproven

Substituted arithmetic

[(120000 ÷ 1M × $2) + (600000 ÷ 1M × $0.2) + (30000 ÷ 1M × $10)]× 40 runs × 1 seat= $26.40 / month

Capacity boundary

Claude Pro uses shared rolling usage windows. Anthropic does not publish a token entitlement, so $20/seat is a sticker reference—not equivalent capacity.

How to use this comparison

A cost comparison, not a usage-limit promise

Choose API when the measured bill is lower. If the seat price is lower, verify that its usage limits or split pools can carry your work; this comparison cannot prove they can.